Monday, April 5, 2010

Barefoot in the.... Everywhere

So one of our favorite things of all time is Toms shoes. Toms is a Santa Monica (Tod's hometown) based shoe company with a great message. For every pair of shoes you buy, they give a pair of shoes to a child that doesn't have any. Their simple business model allows you to become not only their customer, but their partner and fellow philanthropist. Copper loves them because they sell Vegan shoes. Tod loves them because they simple, yet chic. Whatever the reason, they are a company worth looking at. Who doesn't want to look good, feel good and do good all at the same time?? Here are some ways people wear their eco-friendly , philanthropic, fabulous shoes....

The main reason we posted this is because Toms shoes is hosting One Day Without Shoes. What? Yes, its what you think. To raise awareness of the difference a pair of shoes can make in someones life. Now we love this for a few reasons.

1. We will go barefoot for any reason.

2. We like kids.

3. We like helping people.

Now, they say you can go barefoot as much or as little as you like. Obviously you cannot go into stores barefoot and your workplace might frown upon the barefoot movement, but even taking them off for a bit can help you understand the importance of something simple like shoes in a persons life. If you really get into it, the Toms website lists events near your town so you can walk barefoot with your friends and neighbors. If you want more information you can visit the One Day Without Shoes website here or watch their video below.

You said:"Obviously you cannot go into stores barefoot"Really? During the late 1960s and early 1970s young people all over the US were doing just that. You will find that very few places really care about that. Those signs you see saying "shirts and shoes required" did not exist until about 1968 or 1969, their purpose was to keep hippies out of their stores, and were largely ignored. There are no state level laws regarding such matters in the US. That is a myth that was perpetuated by conservatives 40 years ago, who hated the anti-war protesters. Some of us would go barefoot all summer, everywhere. Gradually getting used to it early in the spring made us tough enough by summer to walk on anything. We have the luxury to do that for fun. And doing that does not even come close to what the poor children in third world countries are experiencing - we have plumbing, sanitation, no tropical diseases, and access to tetanus shots, antibiotics, and other medicines. They do not have this, and that is why they need shoes. We only need them for arbitrary cultural and social reasons, and for those who live in areas that have cold winters.

I had no idea about the history of the "shirts and shoes required" signs. How interesting! Doing like the hippies and kicking off our shoes is a great idea. I think this event is a great way to confront those social norms and raise awareness to a worthy cause. You are completely right... NOTHING can compare to what children without shoes experience. This is why TOMS One Day Without Shoes is such a great idea. Whether for one hour or one day we can get a little closer to understanding how others live and how fortunate we are to have what we have. I'm excited to kick my shoes off tomorrow (and go into a few stores doing so <3)